A PROFESSIONAL dancer who was known throughout the borough as the Fred Astaire of Widnes has died, aged 94.

Eustace Touhey started dancing about 60 years ago and was tripping the light fantastic right up until the mid 1990s.

He was also well known as a dance teacher whose pupils won medals in droves and, as a dancing competition judge.

Eustace leaves behind his wife, Rose, who has been looking back over her fond memories their a life together.

She told the Weekly News: 'He started dancing 60 years ago and won many competitions with his dancing partner, Mrs Kilshaw.

'He has covered some ground over the years - he used to adjudicate in Ireland and he used to love teaching dancing to children and loved to see them win medals. He used to say that the difficulty with the girls and boys was that the boys would eventually start courting and didn't want to dance any more, while the girls wanted to carry on.

'He used to put people through their medal classes and he used to say that it was getting the medals that kept him going.'

Rose, who lives in Heath Drive, Runcorn, added: 'He was very well known - I remember a few years ago we were at a choir in Farnworth and two ladies jumped out of the aisle and said do you remember us you taught us dancing in the church!

'I have many fond memories of our life together. He was a lovely man and they used to call him 'nature's gentleman' because he was such a nice guy.

'He would say I have got three loves in my life - my religion, my dancing and I've got you - I said for once I don't mind coming third!'